Yukon River, Dawson City, and the Snow Globe

Valentine’s Day has come and gone. Selecting the appropriate gift for the woman in your life, can have significant repercussions to one’s relationship. Every Valentine’s, I am reminded of a story of a married guest who had just completed a canoeing trip with us on the Yukon River.

Our trip ended in Dawson City, Yukon. We structure the itinerary so that we spend a couple of days in Dawson. The first day is given to taking guests on a tour, showing them some of the more interesting points in and around Dawson. The second day allows people to set their own agenda, and use the time to shop, or visit sites that are of particular interest to them. We usually meet up for a group dinner where individuals recount their day.

One married male (henceforth – MM), who had accompanied our trip alone, had nothing to show for his day. Most of the guests on this trip were females. They asked MM what he had purchased for his wife, seeing she hadn’t objected to his taking this holiday without her. He displayed a puzzled look. The thought that any appreciation was necessary hadn’t crossed his mind. He was assisted in seeing the error of this self-destructive thinking by the females in our group. After dinner, he excused himself from the group to do some shopping before the stores closed.

The next morning, Sunday, we packed up early for our return by van to Whitehorse. After breakfast, we all took our seats in the van. The women were anxious to see what MM got his wife the night before. He produced a small, brown, paper bag. It was a snow globe. He seemed quite satisfied that this gift would delight his wife. The women were incredulous! All hope of leaving Dawson around 8 a.m. was dashed in that moment.

The women told him that the snow globe, although appropriate for one of his drinking buddies back home, would not rise to the level of recognizing his wife’s unselfish expression of love for him. A much better measure was a piece of jewelry, with a high gold content. Damn our schedule! We waited until 10 a.m. for stores to open, as it was Sunday. Some of the women accompanied MM to ensure an appropriate item, with a generous price tag, was selected. MM, with strong female input, decided on a gold ring.

We finally got underway around noon. He jokingly stated later that, if we didn’t see an obituary notice in the Vancouver Sun newspaper, all went well. When we arrived in Whitehorse, he came over to me and handed me the snow globe -”hope you can make some use of it”.

Later in the summer, he forwarded an email with a photo of himself with his wife, her hand outstretched to the camera, displaying the gold ring. Her smile said it all!

And the snow globe? Well, I mounted it on the dashboard of the company’s van. It has never failed to spike curiosity and provide a great story. And, for any married male doing an adventure on their own with us, a compass to follow.